FISH OUT OF WATER
Category: Music & Cinema
Group type: Public group (Help)
Founded: 1 September, 2009
Location: United States,
Members: 0
Group title: BRING THE FISH TO ARKANSAS
“Fish Out of Water”
WOW!!!!!!!!!!
A review by Amos:
Those of you who know me or read my reviews know that I am particularly interested in the subject of homosexuality and religion and I literally devour anything about it. Well, along comes “Fish Out of Water”, a new documentary by Ky Dickens and I am in a state of awe. This is an absolutely beautiful, touching and sensitive film that says a great deal in a very short period of time and everything about it is perfect.
Basically the film is about Dickens’s coming out to her friends when she was a student at Vanderbilt University but on the deeper level it is an exploration of seven Biblical passages that have been used to condemn homosexuality and justify heterosexual marriage. We see an analysis of arguments against homosexuality presented in a way that is enlightening and easy to understand. It is quite simply a look at why people hate us and why this hate has no basis in the Bible.
We are all aware how difficult and challenging coming out of the closet can be and many times it is fundamentalist Christians and religious zealots that make the process so hard and painful. Many use the Bible as a way to condemn the way we live and the film shows us that very few people understand what the Bible really says on the issue. Using animation, interviews and analyses, “Fish Out of Water” shows us exactly what people have misinterpreted for so long.
The title “Fish Out of Water” says a great deal about what the film is about and how we are forced to behave when faced with those who will not accept us. We feel we are excluded from society, religious institutions and, in many cases, family. More surprising is that the fish symbol came into being to represent unity and belonging in the early Church and something that the modern church does not want us to feel.
We see interviews with those who give us their personal experiences with homosexuality and scripture and they are presented as a diverse sampling of the GLBT community. We also meet a group of theologians who share their knowledge with us. Discussing religion is difficult for most people (except those who evangelize) and when homosexuality is added to the discussion, it becomes even more difficult. Dickens also gives us a very personal look at her own experiences. She learned that the seven Biblical passages (four from the Old Testament and three from the New Testament) are taken out of context and used for whatever political reasons that are necessary. Dickens took it upon herself to show how misinterpreted these passages are. It is interesting to note that one of the conclusions that the film draws comes from John Shelby Spong, a liberal Christian theologian and Bible scholar and retired Episcopal bishop is that the Bible will lose some of its validity as a tool of faith and will turn people away from the church because it is so filled with hate—as some claim. The church cannot be discriminatory, he says, and he maintains that discrimination is hateful. Another preacher, John Fellers, from Texas, has spent his whole life fighting on the issue of gays and religion but this film caused him to lose that fight.
I simply cannot recommend this film highly enough. My rabbi and I watched it together and we both were shedding tears throughout. Dickens has given us a wonderful gift with this film but we must pass this gift on. Here is a film that must be seen and not only seen but savored, talked about, and lauded.
Those of you who know me or read my reviews know that I am particularly interested in the subject of homosexuality and religion and I literally devour anything about it. Well, along comes “Fish Out of Water”, a new documentary by Ky Dickens and I am in a state of awe. This is an absolutely beautiful, touching and sensitive film that says a great deal in a very short period of time and everything about it is perfect.
Basically the film is about Dickens’s coming out to her friends when she was a student at Vanderbilt University but on the deeper level it is an exploration of seven Biblical passages that have been used to condemn homosexuality and justify heterosexual marriage. We see an analysis of arguments against homosexuality presented in a way that is enlightening and easy to understand. It is quite simply a look at why people hate us and why this hate has no basis in the Bible.
We are all aware how difficult and challenging coming out of the closet can be and many times it is fundamentalist Christians and religious zealots that make the process so hard and painful. Many use the Bible as a way to condemn the way we live and the film shows us that very few people understand what the Bible really says on the issue. Using animation, interviews and analyses, “Fish Out of Water” shows us exactly what people have misinterpreted for so long.
The title “Fish Out of Water” says a great deal about what the film is about and how we are forced to behave when faced with those who will not accept us. We feel we are excluded from society, religious institutions and, in many cases, family. More surprising is that the fish symbol came into being to represent unity and belonging in the early Church and something that the modern church does not want us to feel.
We see interviews with those who give us their personal experiences with homosexuality and scripture and they are presented as a diverse sampling of the GLBT community. We also meet a group of theologians who share their knowledge with us. Discussing religion is difficult for most people (except those who evangelize) and when homosexuality is added to the discussion, it becomes even more difficult. Dickens also gives us a very personal look at her own experiences. She learned that the seven Biblical passages (four from the Old Testament and three from the New Testament) are taken out of context and used for whatever political reasons that are necessary. Dickens took it upon herself to show how misinterpreted these passages are. It is interesting to note that one of the conclusions that the film draws comes from John Shelby Spong, a liberal Christian theologian and Bible scholar and retired Episcopal bishop is that the Bible will lose some of its validity as a tool of faith and will turn people away from the church because it is so filled with hate—as some claim. The church cannot be discriminatory, he says, and he maintains that discrimination is hateful. Another preacher, John Fellers, from Texas, has spent his whole life fighting on the issue of gays and religion but this film caused him to lose that fight.
I simply cannot recommend this film highly enough. My rabbi and I watched it together and we both were shedding tears throughout. Dickens has given us a wonderful gift with this film but we must pass this gift on. Here is a film that must be seen and not only seen but savored, talked about, and lauded.
"Fish Out Of Water" http://www.fishoutofwaterfilm.com/ has been chosen for the Hot Springs Documentary Film Festival. This is one of the only GLBTQ films to ever be shown at this festival that is regarded as one of the finest film festivals anywhere in the world. We would like to have Ky Dickens, the director of the film present at the festival however given the economic situation of the country, the festival does not have the resources to do this. They have told us that if we can raise $1.000 by October 1st we can bring her in. Does the Rainbow Christians have any Arkansas contacts that we can call on for donations,to let them know about the times and dates the film will be screened?
Filmmaker Ky has promised us that if we can get enough to bring her to the Hot Springs film fest, we will be allowed to show the film free of charge once in Little Rock, Arkansas, and once in Eureka Springs, Arkansas during a Diversity Weekend.
Filmmaker Ky has promised us that if we can get enough to bring her to the Hot Springs film fest, we will be allowed to show the film free of charge once in Little Rock, Arkansas, and once in Eureka Springs, Arkansas during a Diversity Weekend.
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"Bring Us To Arkansas"
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